Optus admitted in an enforceable undertaking accepted by the competition
watchdog that it likely engaged in conduct that likely contravened
Australian Consumer Law, and that it did so from September 2015 through to
the end of June 2017.

The carrier advertised fibre-to-the-node (FTTN) and fibre-to-the-building
(FTTB) plans to 8700 customers where they could not achieve the internet
speeds advertised.

Out of the 8700 customers that were likely misled by Optus, 5430 were on a
100/40 Mbps connection, 1519 were on 50/20Mbps, and 1381 were on 25/5Mbps.

More than a fifth of the customers who signed up to Optus' 100/40Mbps plan
wouldn't receive the 50/20Mbps speeds promoted on the plan below it, says
Rod Sims, chair of the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission
(ACCC).

"Worryingly, many affected Optus FTTN customers could not even receive the
maximum speed of a lower-tier plan," says Sims. "This is a concerning trend
we have seen throughout the industry and we are working to fix this."

The telecommunications carrier has agreed to check with customers who sign
up to an NBN connection within four weeks to make sure they're getting the
speeds they were promised.

Customers entitled to a refund, discounted speed plans, a change in plan
and a waiver of their contract cancellation fee will be contacted by Optus
by 2 March 2018.

"We are continuing to investigate other retail service providers selling
NBN broadband plans, and will take enforcement action if we consider that
they are not delivering on their promises to customers."